Auto industry recalled 20 million vehicles in 2010

Auto industry recalled 20 million vehicles in 2010

WASHINGTON (AP) - Automakers recalled about 20 million vehicles in 2010, led by high-profile recalls by Toyota that prompted new scrutiny of the auto industry's safety record.

The number of recalls this year was the largest in the United States since 2004, according to an analysis of federal data by The Associated Press. The auto industry set a record with 30.8 million recalled vehicles that year.

Toyota Motor Corp. recalled about 7.1 million vehicles in 2010 to fix faulty gas pedals, floor mats that could trap accelerators, defective braking and stalling engines. The safety woes by the world's No. 1 automaker brought more attention to auto safety from government regulators and the public, which filed more than 64,000 complaints with the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, nearly double the number in a typical year.

Among other automakers, General Motors Co. recalled about 4 million vehicles in 2010 while Japanese rivals Honda and Nissan both recalled more than 2 million cars and trucks. Chrysler recalled about 1.5 million vehicles and Ford called back more than 500,000 vehicles. The recall data was preliminary.